West Gippsland Hospital has stood down its internal code yellow today after activating local contingencies with good effect.
The code yellow was activated on Friday because of longer than usual wait times expected to continue for patients.
It is the third time this year that staff shortages have put the hospital into emergency management mode with a state wide code brown in January and a WGHG code yellow declared in May.
A code yellow can be activated when a health service has reached its capacity, meaning all acute beds in the wards and emergency department are full with limited movement.
The code yellow is reviewed daily.
WGHG chief executive officer Dan Weeks said like many hospitals around the state, the hospital was struggling with workforce shortages as it navigated the ever-changing environment of COVID-19.
The hospital has urged people continue to only attend the Emergency Department if they need urgent care.
If you are sick but do not need emergency care, contact your GP, local pharmacist, Nurse on Call (1300 60 60 24) or the after-hours GP Helpline (1800 02 22 22).
"You will be cared for if you present to the ED and it isn't an emergency, but the most sick or injured will be cared for first and you may experience long waiting times," Mr Weeks said.